[Discoveries] 06-01-08 The successful self-righteous -- Luke 18:11

[Inspiration in Your Inbox]

/*The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: 'God, I thank you that 
I am not like other men-robbers, evildoers, adulterers-or even like this 
tax collector." -- Luke 18:11*/

I have been doing a lot of thinking lately about the successful 
self-righteous, and it occurs to me that the enemy probably wants some 
people to be good. There are some people who are disciplined enough to 
pray regularly, avoid all kinds of sin, and live an exemplary life.

Why would the enemy want self-made good Christians in our churches? Very 
simple. So they can offer the wrong prescription to everybody else.

In the passage we looked at yesterday, the apostle Paul asks us, "After 
beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by 
human effort?"

Some will answer, "Yes, and I'm doing very nicely, thank you."

Meanwhile, the rest of us are forced to say, "I try and try and 
everything I try doesn't work."

But here is the beautiful thing: When we finally realize that everything 
we try doesn't work, God has us right where He wants us. We have no 
where else to turn but to Him. None of us can boast about ourselves, but 
rather we can boast that our God knows what to do with those of us who 
have no power to do good on our own.

Be encouraged!
Dwight

You may freely post, reprint or redistribute this devotional provided a 
reference or link back to _DwightClough.com_ 
<http://www.dwightclough.com> is included.

Discoveries Devotional -- Inspiration in Your Inbox is provided daily by
Dwight Clough Ministries, Inc.
1223 West Main Street #228
Sun Prairie, WI 53590 USA
Dwight Clough Ministries is supported by your donations.
Visit _www.DwightClough.com_ <http://www.dwightclough.com> for more 
information.

Change your subscription: 
_http://six.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/discoveries_

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/discoveries/attachments/20080524/f51b01b7/attachment.htm>